Midnight_Nightmare Dragons

by Terry Bolryder

  She heard him cross to the dresser and open a drawer, which creaked. He was rummaging for clothes, and she should probably go get changed as well.

  What was she even thinking coming here?

  There was no sign of anything amiss, and it was once again just illustrating that she kept getting suspicious of Nathan when he seemed, for all appearances, to have nothing to hide.

  But she knew better than most that appearances could be deceiving.

  “Well. I’m going to go get ready and then call Sasha.”

  “Plans for the day?”

  “Yes.”

  “As long as you’re not alone. That’s best until we figure out who is threatening you.”

  “I really should just call the police.”

  He strode toward her, and she turned around to see he was thankfully dressed. In a soft, blue, long-sleeved tee that skimmed gracefully over every muscle and tight, perfectly fitting jeans, he was even more of a knockout than he was in a suit.

  Her lady parts wanted to sing a chorus in his honor.

  Her lady parts needed to shut up and let her do her job.

  “So you trust the police that much, then?”

  “Um. Yes?”

  “Because, in my experience, they are overworked and underpaid and have all the human flaws of any other person.”

  “Oh. And you interact with them a lot?”

  “I see them at the scenes I’m at sometimes. The ones you suspect me of causing.”

  “Oh.”

  “Most of them seem like good people trying to do their job, but I’ve found them mostly useless at taking care of threats of this vague nature.”

  “You’re a philanthropist.” She shook her head impatiently. “Why do you even care about stuff like this? Why get involved?”

  He faced her calmly. “Why do you get involved trying to help local shelters? Why did you risk going up against a billionaire to try and get to the truth?” He touched her cheek, smiled at her scandalized reaction, and then pulled away. He walked over to the door that led out of the bedroom and pulled on the handle. “It’s just who we are.”

  “So you’re saying you go to those scenes to help people?”

  He shook his head. “I told you. I just happen to be nearby.”

  “I don’t believe you.” She narrowed her eyes. He evaded her gaze, and she felt like she had him. “And now I can tell when you lie.”

  His eyebrows rose, and he seemed genuinely surprised by her comment. “You can?”

  She nodded. “I’m pretty good at that in general. Grow up with a liar and you learn pretty quick how to spot a lie.”

  “Is that why you’re obsessed with the truth?”

  She froze for a moment. Truly, before this, she’d never thought about it. “Maybe.”

  “Who was the liar?”

  She swallowed hard, then headed for the door. “This isn’t about me. I need to go get ready.”

  He hurried to step in front of her, and with his height and broad shoulders, there was no way to step around. “Oh, did I find Lillian Goss’s soft spot?”

  “Get out of my way.”

  “Interesting. The hardened reporter obsessed with exposing everyone has secrets of her own.”

  “I don’t have secrets.” She felt her cheeks burn. “I just don’t want to talk about my past because it’s not relevant. What is relevant is you and what you’re doing at these crime scenes. And once I figure that out, you won’t have to worry about seeing me anymore.” She poked him in the chest. “Now move.”

  He put both hands up, and she walked past him, headed for her room so she could shower, change, and call Sasha.

  She needed something to focus on other than Nathan Lancaster.

  “You’re grumpy before breakfast,” he called after her.

  “Shut up!”

  * * *

  “Lil, I really would, but I have a date tonight.” Sasha was genuinely torn over whether or not to come over. Lillian could tell.

  “You can come over now, though. Don’t leave me alone with him.” Lillian was fully dressed down in a gray hoodie with black yoga pants, currently sitting on her bed, begging her roommate to come over.

  Sasha was a homebody, but Lillian knew she should never leave her high and dry.

  “I… Okay. But I still don’t see how you ended up staying at Nathan Lancaster’s house. I thought you hated the guy.”

  “When did I say that?”

  “I don’t know. It was just in your tone, I guess.”

  “I’m passionate about this project; that’s all.”

  “Passionate about Nathan,” Sasha teased in a singsong voice.

  “Ugh, stop it. No. Nothing happening between me and Nathan.”

  “Even though he’s a hot billionaire and you’re living in a house together?”

  “We aren’t living together. We just… live together. Temporarily. Because of the note I told you about.”

  “See, unlike you, I don’t see Nathan as a dangerous character, and I think you’ll be fine there.”

  “Sasha,” Lillian whined. “Please? I’ll owe you forever.”

  Truth be told, at this point, it wasn’t Nathan she didn’t trust. It was herself and her impulses to jump him.

  “Okay. I guess I can’t say no, then, if you really want me to.”

  “I do. Besides, this place is amazing. You’ll like it here.”

  Sasha let out an aggrieved sigh. “Okay. I guess it’ll be an adventure.”

  “Oh, I can promise you that.”

  With that, Sasha hung up, and Lillian went down for breakfast, figuring it would take a while for her friend to get there.

  Nathan was already in the kitchen, and she was surprised to see him reading a newspaper with a traditional breakfast of eggs, toast, and bacon in front of him.

  It was such an oddly normal thing to see him do that it almost felt she was watching a tableau of a model acting out everyday life.

  She huffed as she sat across from him.

  He lowered his paper and pushed his plate toward her. “This is yours. I already had mine.”

  She looked at it doubtfully. “You really don’t have to cook for me. It’s already pretty nice of you to let me stay here.”

  His blue eyes fixed on her curiously. “That’s kind of a change of attitude. I thought you thought it was weird to be here.”

  “Well, I thought about it. I am grateful.” She picked up a piece of toast and bit into it. Damn, perfectly cooked. Everything about him just had to be perfect, perfect, perfect.

  “So is your friend coming?”

  “Yes.” She nodded. “You read the actual newspaper?”

  “Habit I can’t seem to drop.”

  “Looking for any disasters you missed?” She gasped. “Oh, wait, do you like go out and fight crime? Like a vigilante?”

  He nearly choked. “What?”

  “You know, a vigilante.”

  “No, I’m no vigilante,” he said, straightening the front of his shirt. “I just like to read the paper.”

  “Hmph, I thought maybe that’s why you hide at night.”

  “I told you I just like my privacy. So when is your friend coming over?”

  “Soon.” She took another bite of toast and peered at him suspiciously. “So why did you run out on me so suddenly? I get that you have rules, but why so strict? Are you Cinderella? Do you turn into a pumpkin after midnight?”

  He snorted. “I don’t think that’s how it worked.”

  “You know what I mean.”

  He narrowed his eyes. “What about you? Why were you in my bedroom while I was presumably still sleeping?”

  “I told you.” She stabbed at her eggs. “I was finding my host. I’m all alone in this big house, you know. I’m helpless without you.”

  “I feel like you’re never helpless,” Nathan said quietly, leaning back in his chair.

  She once again noted how beautifully his blue shirt skimmed his muscles, and she swallowed her eggs with some
difficulty. Right now there was something else she wanted her mouth on.

  “Oh, you’d be surprised,” she retorted. “I have my problems like anyone. And I don’t… um… think before doing things sometimes.”

  “Like kissing me back last night?”

  She nodded. “Not that I regret it. It was an interesting experience.”

  “For me, too.” He put his paper back up, and she wondered what kind of expression he was hiding behind it. He sounded calm, but for all she knew, he was blushing just as she was.

  A few minutes passed in silence as she finished her breakfast and counted the minutes until Sasha would show up. When a ding sounded, Nathan pulled out his phone and held it up to Lillian. Displayed on the screen was Sasha, waiting by the gate in her yellow Volkswagen Bug.

  “Is that your friend?”

  She nodded.

  “I’ll buzz her in.”

  Lillian picked up her plate and took it over to the dishwasher. “Where’s yours? I’ll put it in as well.”

  He ruffled slightly. “I’ve already taken care of it.”

  “Oh. Well, thanks so much for breakfast. It was really good. Thanks for everything, again. And letting Sasha come.”

  He just shrugged at her and didn’t seem at all interested in meeting her friend, so she simply went to the door so she could open it just as Sasha got there.

  Chapter 10

  Nathan peeked out of the kitchen to see the human Lillian was so enamored with.

  Friends.

  He supposed with all his time on Earth, he should have some, but he didn’t. Acquaintances, business associates, sure. Family, like his brothers, yes.

  But nothing like what was happening in front of him. The two women were embracing as though they hadn’t seen each other in years when it had in fact only been a day.

  It was an interesting contrast. Where Lillian seemed striking and bold, Sasha was the absolute opposite. Shorter, more rounded, with pale-blond hair and eyes in a color he couldn’t make out.

  He found himself profoundly disinterested in any human other than Lillian at the moment, but he still managed to put on a polite expression as Lillian brought Sasha over to meet him.

  “This is my best friend in the world, Sasha Harrington.”

  “Nice to meet you,” Sasha said in a quiet voice, putting out a small, plump hand toward him. He was almost afraid he’d break such a soft little thing, but he took her hand and shook it gently. “Thanks for taking care of Lillian.”

  He cocked his head. The kind of deference she was giving him was more what he was used to in the world when people knew of his reputation. But it was jarring because Lillian never acted like that. She was always real with him, always critical. Maybe a little too critical.

  Sasha pulled her hand back and gave him a smile, and he felt a warmth radiating from her that was so bright he almost wanted to put an arm up to block it from burning him up. Perhaps this was what Lillian was so fond of; this human was clearly full of warm light.

  “Now don’t chop my friend up and put her in the basement,” Sasha said, smiling at him conspiratorially. “No matter how tempting.”

  He had to laugh at that, and he relaxed a little in Sasha’s presence. “Why would I be tempted?”

  “I know Lillian can be a bit… thoughtless when pursuing a story, but I promise she’s one of the best people I know.”

  “I’m right here!” Lillian said in a huff, walking forward. She looked adorable in a gray hoodie that outlined substantial breasts and full hips and softness everywhere else.

  That blasted urge to cuddle reared its head again.

  “Anyway, we’ve got some girl talk to do, so we’ll see you later, Nathan,” Sasha said quickly, pulling Lillian away with her.

  “Don’t you want to see your room?”

  Sasha and Lillian both turned. “I thought we’d be staying in my room? The bed is big enough for the two of us.”

  For some reason, he didn’t like that. Not that he would be able to visit her at night with his current circumstances, but the thought of not being able to, of there always being another person in her bed…

  “Well, you can choose, but if you want your own, you can have the one just down the hall from Lillian’s.”

  Sasha let out a squeal. “Oh, let’s go see it! I need a tour of this house, dammit. If we’re going to be staying with the big, evil Nathan Lancaster, we might as well enjoy his house before we wind up in the basement.”

  She sent him a sparkling look as Lillian groaned and led her friend off in the direction of the bedroom.

  A part of him couldn’t help but be pleased with the olive branch Sasha had extended him. It was clear she thought her friend was off her rocker for doubting him and that she liked him on sight.

  Perhaps in another world, she was the type of friend he would have wanted as well.

  But in this world, humans were an unnecessary complication, and he had to be careful not to get involved with too many of them.

  He was already taking risks getting closer to Lillian, and he had no intention of stopping that pursuit anytime soon.

  So when it came to anyone else, he would just have to be more careful.

  * * *

  “He’s gorgeous,” Sasha said, flopping back on the bed in the room Nathan had suggested for her.

  Lillian watched her with a frown, then took a seat in a chair next to the bed, swinging her legs over the arm of it. “Don’t be like the rest of the world, Sash. Don’t fall for a pretty face.”

  “Lil, he’s not pretty. He’s gorgeous. He’s like if a computer spat out the perfect equation for a man and then gave him charm, money, and then this… thing I can’t put words to.”

  “Thing?”

  “You don’t feel it? It’s like this… riveting intensity that just pulls you in.” Sasha sighed. “I swear, Lil, sometimes it seems like you’re superhuman in your resistance to hotness.”

  “So you like him?” Lillian asked, surprised by the nervousness she felt in waiting for an answer. If Sasha liked Nathan, if they started dating or something…

  “He’s nice,” Sasha said. “But I have my eyes on another prospect.” She looked like a kitten who’d just caught a ball of string.

  “Oh no, not another guy from the library.”

  Sasha’s eyes lit up. “Yes, why not?”

  Lillian groaned. Despite being one of the smartest people she knew, Sasha was also incredibly naive at times, often getting hurt because of her overly romantic notions about love at first sight and happily ever after.

  Lillian had realized a long time ago those things didn’t exist.

  Sometimes that was a benefit.

  “Sash, you don’t know anything about these guys other than they wandered into a public library.”

  “This guy is different. He has a job.”

  Lillian walked over to the bed and sat next to her friend, putting her hand over Sasha’s. “Trust me. You deserve so much more than that. I don’t know why you settle.”

  “I’m not you, Lillian. I’m not bold and strong and taking on the world. I just want a sweet, quiet man I can read by the fire with. I just want a home of my own.”

  “But we have fun living together.”

  “Of course we do, and we’ll always be friends, but you know I always pictured myself being a mother. And I need to get moving on that if I want to.”

  That made Lillian shut up for a moment. Maybe Sasha was right. Maybe it was time for her to get serious. But surely there had to be a better way than random library guys.

  For now, however, she would be supportive, just as Sasha always was for her.

  “Okay, so tell me about this guy that asked you out.”

  “He’s handsome,” Sasha said. “That kind of dark-blond, wheat-colored hair that looks highlighted but just happens in the sun. Boy next door looks. Not too tall, but he works out. You can tell. He said he was smitten with me at first sight. He caught me when I was falling off a ladder.”

 
; Lillian fought back a groan. “You shouldn’t be using those anymore. You’re too short for them. Bad things keep happening.”

  “I like ladders. They make me feel tall.”

  Lillian smiled. “And provide moments for Prince Charming to come to the rescue.”

  Sasha flushed. “I don’t do that on purpose.”

  Lillian squeezed her friend’s hand. “I know.”

  “And anyway, he asked me out for tonight, and I want to go… but… I mean you’re right. I don’t know him…”

  “And?”

  “And so I was planning to ask you if… if you want to double?”

  Lillian shook her head abruptly. “Oh no. No, no, no. No, no, no, no, no.”

  “Oh, come on, Lil. You always say someone should be there to keep an eye on me. And you’re right. I don’t know this guy at all. He wants to take me to a restaurant. An actual restaurant.”

  “As opposed to the others who wanted you to take them to a food stand.”

  Sasha flushed, and there was hurt in her eyes. “Okay, maybe I didn’t see some warning signs. That doesn’t mean I’m always doomed to fail.”

  Lillian put an arm around her friend, pulling her in close. “I’m sorry. You know I don’t know when to shut my stupid mouth. And you’re right. I’m protective of you.” She sighed. “But I honestly have no idea who I would bring on a date.”

  Sasha’s gray-green eyes lit up mischievously. “I have an idea.”

  Lillian could tell who she meant just by the look on her face. “No. Absolutely not. I’ll call anyone else first.”

  “Oh, come on. Isn’t that mean? He’s having you over, and you just go out without him? Besides, I think he likes you.”

  Lillian snorted, uncomfortable because of how close Sasha seemed to be to the truth. Lillian wasn’t sure if Nathan liked her, but she was pretty sure he was attracted.

  But that was different than saying yes to a date.

  He’d probably think she was crazy for asking and laugh at her.

  Tell her she wasn’t much of a journalist after all and tease her about being unprofessional.

  She was here to find a story and to stay safe from whomever had threatened her. She wasn’t here to romance Nathan Lancaster.